Some of the information in this article about Arizona home builders buying lots again seems to be based on real estate agent puffery.
For example;
Mesa, Chandler and Gilbert, land brokers say, are now the hot spots for homebuilders. Lot prices in those southeast Valley communities have almost tripled in the past two years. Home sites are selling for more than $80,000 in parts of Chandler, prices similar to what builders paid in the pre-boom years of 2003-04.
I don’t follow lot prices but I’m not buying it.
The quote below, however, seems plausible.
“Smart builders have cuts costs to the point where they can sell homes for less but still see a slight profit,” Brown said. “Construction costs are half of what they were five years ago. Builders’ office and marketing overhead is one-third of what is was then. Homes have been streamlined with fewer expensive amenities and extras.”
Reality Check
Although the median price of a metro Phoenix new home sold during April was $199,362, up from $188,000 last year, 2009 was the slowest year for Arizona home building since the early 1970s!
[Hey, I remember that recession! That’s when I decided to quit my job as a busboy at Hobo Joe’s in Flagstaff to go to college. College sounded pretty damn bitchin’ after working a couple of months full time as a busboy.]
Many experts, however, only expect small increases in Arizona home construction in 2010 and 2011.